Here Today
by Hawker97
Summary: Ari and Paul met in college and started off as friends until they fell in love. They're young and in love, but things seem to be going too perfectly until Paul abruptly dies and Ari is left with not knowing what to do. She wishes for it all to be just a bad dream that she'll wake up from, maybe it all was a dream after all.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: Hi there! So the following fic came from some idea I had and I warn that it's kind of sad and not so pleasant of a fic I must admit. I'm a bit afraid to post it since in my opinion it's kind of weird but it helped me with writers block and I had fun writing it. Nonetheless I hope you like it and reviews would be appreciated, anything will do! Enjoy!**

Set in present time

I wake up hours after having fallen asleep and the bright lights of the alarm clock read 9 AM and I rub my eyes and feel the heat of his body next to mine. I turn around to see the soft features of his face as he's peacefully asleep and he looks so innocent and vulnerable. I carefully push the stray strands of his dark hair away from his eyes and I kiss his forehead softly so I won't wake him and I lay my head back on the soft pillow. I close my eyes and feel his arm wrap around my waist as he shifts in the bed and I smile to myself. I sometimes can't believe that he's mine and we're finally married, yesterday was the happiest day of my life and such an emotional day too. It was perfect though, the whole entire day. The ceremony was simple and sweet and it was obvious that everybody had a fun time at the reception from the delicious food, to the music, the dancing, place for conversation and the warm atmosphere. I feel his warm lips touch my cheek and I smile at the feeling and he nuzzles his face into my neck.

"Good morning, wife." he mumbles into my neck and I run my hands through his hair and open my eyes to face his wandering eyes.

"Morning, husband." I reply and a smile spreads across his lips.

"How did my beautiful wife sleep?" he asks and we stare at each other while my fingers are caught in his soft hair.

"Wonderfully, how about you husband of mine?"

"Perfectly, so are you feeling alright?" he goes on and I nod and his hand trails to my growing abdomen.

"I'm excited to find out what this little baby of ours is when we go back home." Paul says and I smile at his words.

"So am I." I add and we look down to my small bump.

"If the baby is a girl we're naming her Penny or Rosie." he says and my smile stays.

"Fine, if the baby is a boy then we're naming him Levi or Zack." I state and he nods with a look that says 'deal'.

His hand leaves my stomach and we wrap our arms around each other and I bury my face into his warm neck. I feel his hand rub my back and I exhale and close my eyes as I'm content and relaxed.

I let my mind wander as I remember how we initially met two years ago and how we started out as friends who met through mutual friends. It was in college where he was going to school for his teaching degree as an English teacher and me a pediatrician which kind of fell through a bit. We saw each other off and on for the next few months until we got each others number and started to go to the mall, movies, concerts and the coffee shop together. We started off as acquaintances, then we evolved into friends, than close friends, and best friends until we realized and acknowledged that we loved each other. It was a hidden feeling for both of us as we feared if we declared it to the other they wouldn't feel the same way and we would wreck our close relationship. Luckily we both felt the same way and we've been together for the past year and a half, with our struggles, our accomplishments, our fights, our bickering, our own achievements and our careers flourishing before both of our eyes.

I feel him move so he's laying on his back and I lay on top of him on my side. He pulls the bed sheet over us and I keep my eyes closed while I hear the beating of his strong heart.

"Let's name her Penny, if the baby's a girl." Paul suggests as he tangles his fingers in my hair and I nod in agreement.

Silence follows his words as we share heat between our two bodies and his heartbeat starts to lull me to sleep and it easily calms my mind. This is the simple life, being happy and relaxed, in a comfy bed with the one you love.


	2. Chapter 2

That _was_ the simple life anyways, when everything was happy and before the tragedy that shook my whole world and which I wish never had happened.

Our honeymoon lasted a week and than we went back home to our homey apartment we share. We also returned to his job as a teacher and mine as an intern being an OB-GYN nurse at the local hospital but I take a class at the college still two days of the week.

"I'm going to work then, do you wanna ride with me?" Paul asks as we're in our kitchen and he's twisting on the lid for his coffee mug.

"No thanks, I'll just drive myself." I reply and he nods.

"I'll see you later then love, bye." he responds as he walks to me and we hug and kiss.

"Have a good day darling, I love you." he says as we look at each other with our arms around the other.

"Thanks honey, you have a good day too. Don't let those teenagers bother you too much." I say and he shrugs with a smile and we kiss again before he leaves.

I grab my purse and get my shoes on before leaving the apartment and driving to work.

Today was a slow day even though what seems like dozens and dozens of women have babies every day at the local hospital, and I was left with boring paper work that I wasn't interested in doing.

My time finally comes for lunch break and I make my way to the local high school that Paul teaches at. He tells me that he loves it for the most part even though the annoying, dramatic teenagers can get to him sometimes and he surely doesn't enjoy all the work he has to grade.

I find the office and I quickly sign the check in sheet with my name and time and I wander the halls of the familiar school since I went here as a teenager. Things sure have changed over the past 5 years since I was 18, i'm happily married, I have a almost stable career in the medical field and I'm 5 months pregnant with my husband and i's first child together.

I find his room and the wood door is slightly ajar to see him working at his desk with some music playing in the background. I smile at the sight of him hard at work in the environment he loves to be in as he scribbles away and stares at the paper that lays in front of his eyes.

"Excuse me, Mr. McCartney?" I ask after softly knocking on the door and he looks up to see me and a smile spreads across his lips.

"Hey love, what're you doing here?" he questions while standing up and I enter his room.

"I thought maybe you'd like to have lunch together." I respond and hold up a bag of our favorite meal from a local restaurant.

"You thought correctly." he replies and I smile and I drag over a chair to sit by him at his desk.

"How's your day been going?" I ask as we both have our feet propped up on his desk and we work on our food as we sit next to each other.

"Fairly good, what about yours love?" he responds and I shrug.

"Slow, I've had to do paperwork all day." I speak and he nods with a groan.

"I'm sorry to hear. Have you been feeling alright otherwise?"

"Mmhmm just a little nauseous at times." I say and he nods in understanding before taking one last bite of his food and setting the remains on his desk.

I finish mine and set it beside his and he stretches and I rest my hands on my small bump that barely makes it look as if I'm pregnant. We've decided to not tell anybody just yet, not a soul, just to be sure nothing happens to the baby and we plan to tell family sometime in the next two weeks.

"So Ari, what color do you think we should paint the nursery?" Paul asks with a yawn and I lean back into the chair.

"I think we should paint it purple if it's a girl and some shade of blue if it's a boy." I reply and he nods in agreement.

We talk some more before I leave to get back to work. We talk about our day, the baby, the anticipation of us becoming parents and other basic things married couples talk about.

The rest of the day drags on as I did more paperwork at my job and I waited for the end of my shift to come so I could go home and take a much needed nap as I was tired.

Paul and I ate a simple dinner as he had a lot of assignments and essays to correct and I did some chores and cleaning around the apartment.

"Darling, I'm gonna go pick up milk and eggs at the store quick, kay?" Paul asks as it's around 7 now and we stand in the kitchen.

"Okay." I reply and he nods.

"I won't be too long, I love you." he says before giving me a kiss.

"I love you too." I respond and he gives me a smile before grabbing the car keys and walking out the door, that'd be the last time I'd ever see him.

I wiped the counters and put the dirty dishes into the dishwasher while listening to music on the radio for the next 10 minutes as he was gone.

I finished my chores and sat on the couch to turn on the tv and while flipping through channels I came across the news talking about a store having been robbed just recently tonight and somebody being killed because of it.

"The criminal is unknown at this point but the police are looking into this and making quick work of trying to find the man. As you see behind me is the store where it happened and where the police have now quartered off as a crime scene. They aren't letting out much information at this point except for that the victim is a caucasian male, about 24, with dark hair, about 5'11 and normal build." the female newscaster announces as she's at the scene and my hand shoots to my mouth at the details she explains.

The man she described sounded just like Paul and the store is the one we always go to and at the thought of that tears spring to my eyes.

**AN: Well, what're your thoughts? The following parts are about to get pretty sad, so beware. I hope you're liking 'em and at least one or two people are checking out this short fic of mine. Reviews would be appreciated, so feel free!**


	3. Chapter 3

My mind starts to race and jump to conclusions at this horrible thought and my eyes stayed glued to the screen even though tears interrupted my vision.

I continue to watch as they talk more about what happened, but they don't mention a word about the victim and I grabbed my phone and dialed in Paul's number.

It went to voicemail the five times I called and each time I heard the cherry british accent of my husband and that made me worry even more.

I kept telling myself that I'm just overreacting and I tried several tactics to attempt to calm myself down, they all _failed_. I told myself that maybe he went to another store, that his ringer is turned off, he forgot his phone in the car. But I couldn't convince myself and I watched as the hand on the clock kept nearing towards an hour for him being gone.

This _can't_ be happening and with all of my feelings I had a panic attack where I couldn't breath and I cried so hard, but I recovered.

The clock now reads 10 o'clock, he would've been back by now or had called me if traffic had been a problem or if the car didn't start. I look to my phone and the last phone call I got from him was yesterday. I pace around our small living room while the volume is turned up on the tv and they still haven't said any more about the victim of the shooting.

Please don't let it be him, not my husband whose child I'm carrying.

I almost drove down there to the store myself but I got a phone call before I made that decision, it was from the police.

"Is this Arianna McCartney?" a male voice says after I answer the phone with a shaky hello.

"Yes, can I help you?" I reply shakily.

"This is Officer Phillips from the local police department, I need you to come down to the station." he says and I nod to myself while tears stream down my face.

It _was_ him.

I quickly leave the apartment and drive to the local station and I try to keep it together and each time I think I have control I loose it and start to cry again. I park and walk into the building that's full of uniformed bodies, voices and the sound of phones ringing and I find the officer who I spoke to on the phone.

He leads me to his office and I sit down and exhale a shaky breath as I'm scared for what he'll tell me. I still hope it wasn't him.

"Your husband is James McCartney, correct?" the brunette officer with the cliche officer mustache says as he sits across from me with his navy hair cut.

"Yes." I reply and I twiddle with my fingers nervously.

"I'm sorry to inform you that your husband was killed earlier this evening by an armed criminal at the local market a mile away." he utters the words my ears refuse to accept and I start to cry again, I cant and don't want to believe it.

"Is there any family who could come down here to be with you at this time?" he asks and I say my best friend Stacy and he calls her to come down.

"Oh Ari!" my red headed, tall friend Stacy says as she enters the room and she sits next to me and wraps her arms around me.

"He's gone." I cry into her shoulder as I refuse to accept this.

I saw him not even 3 hours ago, how could this have happened to _him_? To _me_?

That night was the worst of my life as I was put through the brutal process of signing papers and this and that. Stacy stayed with me the whole night and I couldn't bare to go back to my apartment, our apartment that I shared with my husband so I stay at her house.

I go back with Stacy to the station the next morning and the officer who is now dealing with the case tells me how the criminal robbed the market and my husband who just happened to be paying in front where it happened got the worst of it all. Nobody else was hurt or shot like he was, everybody else walked away with emotional scars when my husband never walked out of the market.

He asked if I wanted to see his body and I was quick to say no and I met with his lawyer after that while I'm in such a horrible mess.

"I'm sorry about your loss, Mrs. McCartney." the male lawyer says as I meet him at the court house and I nod silently.

"About your husbands will then, I have it here and he fortunately updated it not too long ago." he states and I nod and look ahead with no interest in what I'm doing right now.

I'm tired beyond belief because I cried myself to sleep last night and I woke up several times screaming from the horrible dreams I had which left me with hardly any sleep. Stacy begged me to eat breakfast and lunch today and I barely ate anything for either, or I threw up what I did. I watch as the professional like lawyer who clearly has his act together removes documents from his briefcase.

"It looks that he left every single thing to you. His few bank accounts, the cars, the house and anything entitled to his name." he explains and my face glazes over with a confused expression.

"House?" I mutter, we don't have a house.

"Yes, your husband put the down payment for this house over on Maple grove just Monday." he replies and I sigh and look to my lap, today is Friday.

He gives the documents to me after some more professional talk and I go back to Stacy's house. I can't fathom the thought of returning to the apartment where he's everywhere. I'd do anything right now to have him before me or in my arms. I wish to be in his safe, strong arms right this moment.

My phone rang and rang that day and the previous night and I was the fated person who had to confirm what happened.

"Come on Ari, you have to eat honey." Stacy begs as we sit at her kitchen table with lasagna on our plates.

"I'm not hungry." I refuse in a dead tone.

"Ari, you gotta eat." she encourages and i shake my head. I bet she'd be nagging even more if she knew that I'm pregnant.

"He wouldn't want you to be like this." she says and I sigh and look to my lap.

"That doesn't change things Stacy and it doesn't help at all." I retort and I get up and walk off to the room i'm staying in and fall back onto the bed.

"Paul, why'd you have to leave?" I wonder aloud while picking at the blanket and I bet I look like hell right now, I feel as if I've been drug to hell and back a few times with what I've gone though in the past 20 hours.

"I miss you." I say aloud and with that I fall asleep.


	4. Chapter 4

I awake from a horrible dream and i'm again crying. I sigh and push my unwashed hair away from eyes. I can't believe this is actually happening to me. I want to think that he's at some conference or big meeting for his job and that's why he isn't currently here.

"Paul?" I oddly say and his figure appears before me, imaginary it seems.

"Why'd you leave?" I ask.

"I didn't have a choice." he replies and he lays on the bed next to me.

"I miss you so much." I mutter with a sob and I stare at his imagined figure.

"I know you do love, but everything will be okay." he states and i shake my head.

"I want you back, I want you to be okay and to be alive." I continue with a sob and I again hear his soothing voice.

"You're going to be alright, it's all going to be _okay_ Ari."

"I don't see how it's going to be okay. I have to arrange your funeral in the coming days for it to happen on Wednesday. I have to call your dad and tell him what happened. I have to raise our child alone." I say and the last part was the hardest to say, and realize.

"You'll be fine without me, you're a strong woman and you'll be a fantastic mother." he goes on as I still cry.

"Our child won't have it's father." I state the obvious and he sighs and I stare him in the eyes, how can he seem so real right now when he's gone?

"Will you promise me something?" he asks and I nod.

"I want you to promise that you'll raise our child with the knowledge of who I was, who their dad was. I want you to show them pictures of me, all that you have. Show them the home movies you have of us. Tell he or she the story of how we met and how mummy and daddy fell in love. How we loved each other with all of our beings and how you were my whole world, how you meant everything to me." he says and I can't help but to cry so hard, he keeps saying was, past tense.

"You know i was so excited to be a father and how every day I thought about the little baby we would soon have." he says and he starts to cry too, this hurts so much.

"You were the best thing that happened to me Ari, I never thought I could find love like I did with you. The day we got married was the happiest of my life and I couldn't wait to grow old with you and have children together."

"Then come back!" I beg while tears pour from my eyes.

"I can't love, you know that." he replies and his hand moves to my face but I don't feel his touch.

"I can't do this without you, i can't raise the baby without you."

"Yes you can, I know you can. It's gonna be hard at times and it might be really hard for awhile but when you see that baby of ours be born I know you'll be happy. Yes it won't be easy but you know i'd be here if I could."

"I can't Paul, I can't have our baby and have to see you in our child every day and know that you won't be here to see our child grow." I reply and I let out a shaky breath.

What has my once seemingly perfect and happy life turned into?

"You're gonna be okay." he states but I don't believe it, not for a second.

"Are you in heaven?" I ask and he nods.

"How is it?" I question.

"Pretty amazing. I get to see my mum all the time, but what would make it perfect is you being there, I'll just have to wait." he replies and I sigh.

"Maybe I should just join you."

"No _don't_ say that Ari, you have our baby to take care of and one day raise. They'll need you to be their mum. I need you and them to carry on the memory of me." he objects and I sigh and rub my eyes.

"But it hurts so much Paul. I can't even imagine going back to the apartment and then having to have our baby and raise him or her without you there as their father." I reply.

"I know it hurts love and I hate to see you in so much pain but it'll get better, not now or maybe anytime soon but it will darling, I promise."

"Until death do us part. We were married for a week, Paul!" I complain and he sighs and looks at me with his droopy eyes.

"But I loved you enough to fill a lifetime and I still love you. I know you'll love me for a lifetime." he replies.

"I want you to be happy Ari." he continues and nothing is said for a minute.

"Your students miss you." I state.

"Those brats miss me?" he asks and I nod and he seems so real in front of me but I can't touch him.

"I love you, Ari." he says as I look at him intently with tired eyes.

"I love you Paul, I always will." I respond.

"It's going to be okay, I promise you that." he says and he disappears after I blink.

I really am going crazy from sleep deprivation huh?

I move my hands to my pregnant belly and stare at it as I try to fathom the thought of having to be a single parent. Being a widow is already so hard for not even one day. I want my life back, where my husband was in it and where everything was going to be okay. I don't believe that it will be anymore.

**AN: Thoughts?**


	5. Chapter 5

The next few days continued to show that what I wished was just a bad dream isn't true as I arranged his funeral and my family and friends tried to comfort me but I instead was so mad that I didn't let them. I'm mad because he left and because our child won't have a father. I'm mad at that bastard who took my husband away from me.

Today is the funeral at some church here in town, a big one at that, and I'm walking up to our apartment to grab a few pictures of Paul for the service. I twist the key in the lock and turn the light on to see my familiar apartment that holds so many memories of him. From his heartfelt laugh, making cookies together, him grading papers at the kitchen table, us standing together before the counter with his hands on my belly after we read the positive test. It's hard to believe that my eyes can produce any more tears as I swiftly walk in and find an album of pictures. I grab a few from our college years, one taken a day before it happened, and one from our wedding day. I look to our unmade bed and my lips quivers at the thought of never waking up to him, ever again. I'll miss that so much. I find a button up of his strewn on the chair in the corner and I pick it up and inhale his familiar, calming scent. I put the shirt back and get the hell out of there and make my way to the church where so many people already are.

I don't like attention on me as it is and these past 5 days have been what I would want to avoid but I can't. My husband is the big talk of the town and I'm getting hounded from the news and family and friends because of it.

I stand there at my car after getting out as I watch people dressed in black walk into the wooden doors of the church and I lift my feet and follow them. The service doesn't start for another half hour and half of the pews are already filled. He was a well liked man, very popular and the nicest man I had ever met.

I find his Dad, brother and some other family of his and his dad gives me a weak smile as I approach them.

"Hello darling." his kind father says as I walk into his arms and we share a warm embrace.

"How've you been?" he asks after we part.

"You can only guess." I reply softly and he nods with a sad expression.

"He loved you so much Ari, you were his world, his reason to live." Jim says and I nod.

I think about how still nobody knows that I'm pregnant. How will I tell them? Will they believe me or think it's a sick, sympathetic joke?

"I really loved your son." I reply and he nods.

"I know love, thank you for loving him." he says and we part ways and I go to put the pictures of him on the table in the hall with an already collage of pictures.

I look at the pictures in my hand while voices of the bodies surrounding me and I admire his smiling face in the pictures as he looks so happy and I try to remember him like that.

"It'll be okay." I hear a voice say, his voice and I exhale a breath.

I put the pictures in frames and still look at them as he's laughing in the one picture with his brother and some of our college buddies as the men pose at our wedding. That was not even two weeks ago. I look to the next one from us two in college and we look different and innocent, it was before we started to date, just friends.

I set the frames down and make my way through the crowds to the auditorium as I stare at my feet and avoid stares and people. I must be the subject of everyones conversations; the poor newlywed whose husband was shot.

I find a seat in the front row by his dad and a few of our college buddies and I stayed by his brother Mike's side all while. I've always been close and gotten along with his nice brother and I felt as if he was the only one I'd let comfort me and I rested my head on his shoulder while the service started.

A lot of people went up to tell their memories and relationship with Paul and some memories were funny and people laughed but I didn't. I was due to go up and talk and Stacy wanted to go with me but I told her not to, i don't want to look more helpless than I already do. I walk up on stage and stand before the mic and the hundreds of people who fill the large space and who look to me. I let out a nervous breath and look to the big framed picture of Paul whose smiling and happy on the table in front here.

"Thanks to all of you who came, I know Paul would've been pleased with so many people having come and remembering him in this way." I start nervously.

"My husband was a wonderful man who loved to make others happy. He was an English teacher and even though his least favorite part of the job was grading papers, he loved what he did and I know he loved to teach the teenagers who sometimes could be brats." I say the last part playfully and people laugh. I find some faces of his students in the crowd and they smile a bit but they look sad too.

"He lived life to the fullest and he was always so positive and happy about things. I know he wouldn't all of us to be crying about what's happened but instead remember the fond memories we have of him and to be thankful for having know him. Thanks for your time." I conclude and walk off the stage to sit by Mike and he wraps an arm around me as I cry again, when will I ever stop?

Even after five days it doesn't seem real that he's gone and not coming back. I'm still waiting to wake up from this horrible nightmare.

**AN: I hope this doesnt seem too weird and sad to you guys, so i'm sorry if you've read any of it and hate it, thats why im afraid to post it here. But anyways leave reviews if you wanna.**


	6. Chapter 6

The service ends a little bit after I had spoken and then everybody went to the meeting hall of the church and dished up on the arrangement of food that people had brought. I sit there at a table with his Dad, Mike, Stacy and his best friend who I know as well and we went to college with. I stare at my unappetizing plate filled with different foods and I stab a piece of pasta with my fork and eat it without tasting it. I feel as if I'm in some daze, heck I'm sure I am, because I still haven't registered this even in the slightest. I don't want to accept that he's gone, I don't know how to.

I discreetly lay my hand on my small baby bump and I think of how Thursday I'm supposed to go to the doctor to find out whether I'm having a girl or a boy. It was something we were supposed to do together and he was ecstatic about getting to find out the sex of our baby. Parenting was something we were supposed to do together but now I've been left to do it alone. I feel a weird feeling in my abdomen, a type of moving and I realize the baby is moving and I cry because of that. He _isn't here_ to feel our baby kick and move.

The rest of the day was a blur to me as the lunch continued and then ended before people were due to go to the cemetery. I don't remember hardly any of it as I somehow got through it but I was so tired and exhausted to fully be there and present.

I made my way back to our apartment after all the proceedings had finished and I went straight for the bedroom and I fell asleep as soon as I hit the soft mattress. I wish that I could've woken up having him next to me but I woke up alone in a cold bed before I got ready for the day and my first day back at work or what today would be my class at the college.

I avoided all people's looks and stares that morning as I trudge through the densely packed hallways and I found my way to the classroom and listened to the lecture. I barely remember any of it as I couldn't pay attention but oh well and I find my way to the library afterwards and sit down at a table with my books and heavy laden shoulders. It's hard to be somewhere like the library here, the college in itself or the apartment where there's so many memories that i have of him.

We used to meet up here with friends or later on just us two, to study, do homework and chat together with our cups of coffee and now that's a lost memory and time. I look down at the wood desk and I find the writing he carved a year and a half ago:

_**A.B & P.M Forever**_

I sigh and dig out my textbook and worksheet and begin on it and I'm thankful for it taking my mind off things, off everything before I drove to my doctors appointment.

"Do you want to know what gender the baby is?" my doctor asks as I look at the monitor where the baby is moving and a small smile plays on my lips at the sight.

"Uh no, not anymore." I reply and she nods and continues to move the wand along my abdomen.

She does a 3-D ultrasound and it was amazing really seeing the baby in that way with he or she's slightly chubby cheeks and button nose. It's crazy to think that his life is being carried on inside me, in our daughter or son.

Afterwards I go to the store, not the market, to buy some groceries, laundry detergent and that kind of stuff and I took my sweet time as the last thing I wanted to do was go home to the empty apartment. I never could've imagined that my life would turn out like this, it's definitely not something you dream about, it's something you hope doesn't happen to you one day. But yet it happened to me and I still have trouble wrapping it around my head that he's really gone. I wish he was just in the aisle over getting shampoo or something else on this list I hold, but he isn't.

I pay for my things and go home to warm up some Ramen noodles and I watched some movie on tv while eating the bowl of noodles and then I found the carton of chocolate of ice cream I bought and ate some of that. My family has been calling pretty often to see if i'm alright, how i'm doing, if I want company or if I need anyone to come over and help with laundry or something around the house. Which i said no thanks to most but I let a few people come over like Stacy and my two sisters just to spend time with each other but I tried to avoid the subject of Paul in all discussions we had.

I went on with my life the next day as hard as it still is without him and walking past the baby aisle the next day at the store seeing couples smile while picking out clothes made me long for having him back so we could do it together. Going to school was a constant reminder of him and the memories I have of him from this place. I also had to go to his work to collect the things from his classroom and that was one of the hardest things as I took a box and set the pictures of us from our wedding and before then and all the books and writings he had.

"You're Mr. McCartney's wife, aren't you?" a male student asks me as I exit his classroom with the box of things in my arms.

"Yes I am, were you one of his students?" I reply and he nods with a small grin.

"He was a great teacher you know, my all time favorite. He always had the best stories and I remember how he spoke of you sometimes; how happily married he was and how beautiful and funny you are. English was my hardest subject before this year but it came to be my easiest one this year with his help, he always made things easier for me." he says and I nod with a small smile.

"Thanks, that's really nice of you to stay. I agree, he really was a great teacher and you should feel glad to have had him as your teacher, I wish he could've been one of my teachers. He was far more nicer than my high school English teacher." I reply and he nods.

"I do feel very glad, I'm happy to have known him and we all miss him here, a lot." he says and I nod and he leaves to get back to class.

I go home and set his things in our room and lay down on the couch to take a nap and when i wake up I'm confused as things look different and the time reads 6:30 and the date is October 24th when I thought it was 30th. The 24th was when Paul died.


	7. Chapter 7

I hear the key twist in the door and I lift my head off the pillow to look at the door as it opens and oddly Paul walks in with a grocery bag.

"Hey love." he says as he walks in with a warm smile, what's going on?

"Where were you?" I ask slowly and he looks confused as he sets the bag on the counter.

"I went to the store to get eggs and milk, I told you before I left love." he replies and I stand up as he walks over and I hug him, he's real.

"Is everything okay, darling?" he asks and he hugs me back and kisses the top of my head.

"I don't know." I reply slowly as I'm terribly confused.

"You must've just woken up from a nap so you're probably a bit confused, love." he says softly, not in a mean, scolding way.

"I had a bad dream, a really bad dream." I reply into his t shirted chest.

"Do you wanna tell me what it was about?" he asks as I look up at him and he pushes hair out of my eyes.

"It was horrible." I reply and start crying.

"Hey, it's okay, tell me what was so bad about it thats making you cry." he says with a concerned look on his face.

"It was so real." I mumble into his chest as I bury my face into his chest and inhale his familiar scent.

"You went to the grocery store and something happened to you, you didn't make it." I reveal and I hear him sigh as he strokes my hair and keeps his arms wrapped around me in a snug embrace.

"I'm right here sweetheart, I'm perfectly fine. I'm not hurt and everything is okay. You're okay, I'm okay and our little baby is okay." he says and I look up to him and he lays his hand on my bump.

"How about we go take a nap?" he asks and I nod and he leads us to our room and we lay down next to each other.

I continue to cry as I'm confused, sad and so lost with what's going on. I thought he died but now he's here and he's okay, alive and breathing. I open my eyes to see him laying beside me with his stunning eyes set on me while he pushes my hair away from my eyes and strokes my cheek.

"Did you go to the market or a different store?" i ask him as we share eye contact and i push a stray lock of hair out of his eyes.

"I just went to the grocery store, which is farther away compared to the market, 'cause i guess there was a robbery or something at the market." he replies and my eyebrows raise a tad as i look up and down his real and ever present body, what the hell is going on?

"A robbery?" i question and he nods.

"Did anybody get hurt?" I say.

"Not that i know of." he responds and i nod while i play with the buttons on his dress shirt.

I reach over to the bedside table for my phone and i look through my calls and texts in search of something that may prove i'm imaging him being back.

"I called you you know, but you didnt answer." i state as i press the lock button on my phone and the screen turns black.

"Oh yeah, i'm sorry about that love. I had my ringer off and you called when i was at checkout, i meant to call you back."

"Oh, its fine." I reply and i sigh and place my phone back on the table adn look back to Paul's worried face.

It never happened, did it? He didn't die, the funeral never happened, i don't see the box of things i removed from his classroom, i never met that officer at the station or the lawyer to go over his will. I wish i knew what is going on here.

"Ari, what's wrong love?" he asks and i blink and find his eyes that sit below his furrowed brow.

"I-i thought you died, but now you're here, i'm so confused." i reply and i close my eyes and feel him pull me over and envelop me with his arms.

"You just had a vad dream, thats all darling. I'm fine and you're fine." Paul states and i nod into his warm chest.

"I'm right here sweetie, nothings gonna happen to me, to you or our baby. Our little family is safe and sound." he adds and i again nod in understanding.

I suddenly feel a weird feeling in my stomach and i move away from him to lay my hands on my belly and i feel the sensation again.

"The baby just moved." i announce with a smile and i raise my eyes to see his bright expression.

"Wow, is the baby still moving?" he asks and i nod as i felt for the third time the weird sensation and i take his hand and place it over the spot where i felt it.

"Ah, thats amazing." he says what im too thinking and i nod with a smile, i feel like i havent smiled for years.

"Our little baby's moving." Paul says with a proud, beaming smile and i nod as my eyes fall back to my small bump where the baby continues to make movements under our hands.

I look back to Paul who stares at where each one of our hadns lay. His look is of pure joy and admiration as we share this special moment of feeling our child move. He catches me looking at him and he locks eyes with me and flashes me a happy smile with those pearly whites of his. He leans in to touch his lips to mine in a sweet kiss and i enjoy the short moment and overall wonderful moment as we celebrate feeling our unborn child move.

He is real, he's here before me and everything.

It all was just a bad dream after all, wasn't it?

**AN: Well if you made it this far and were nice enough to read the whole thing i applaud you and love you for doing that. So this is where this short, kind of one shot ends. Which is weird because i wrote all these parts starting from last night and i wrote this part at school today, my hand was cramping haha. Anyways i hope whoever read this enjoyed it and didnt find it all too weird and i hope you didnt cry, i must admit it brought tears to my eyes writing it haha. Reviews would be nice!**


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